


Cold Coffee

by sharktoothedsmile



Category: Voltron - Fandom, Voltron: Legendary Defender, vld - Fandom
Genre: M/M, another coffee shop AU, klance, secretly pining lance, soft fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-20
Updated: 2017-09-25
Packaged: 2018-12-31 22:36:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,614
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12142608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sharktoothedsmile/pseuds/sharktoothedsmile
Summary: Look! Another coffee shop AU.-What's a better way to flirt with someone than by harrasing them? This method is all fine and dandy until the consequences catch up. Confrontation, confessions, coffee- all found here in this short story!





	1. Chapter 1

"Bad haircut, your drink is ready!"

'Bad haircut' crinkled his nose when his 'name' was called. He adjusted the strap of his bag and walked stiffly to the counter, snatching his drink with an annoyed snarl.

"Hey, buddy. I've told you, what? A thousand times now? My name is Keith. Keith! That is my name. Not 'mullet', not 'needs a haircut', not 'shaggy', not 'bad haircut'- my. Name. Is. Keith." Keith ripped the label from the cup to rid his drink of that awful name, and swore under his breath when he now held the scorching drink in his hand without the buffer. No regret showed on Keith's face as he exited the shop, yet he did snatch several napkins to put around the cup on his way out. The people who had turned to watch went back to his own business after Keith had left; the regulars at the coffee shop were used to 'Mullet' leaving in a rage, but it was a bit startling to those who didn't know this was a routine occurrence. Behind the counter, the barista- the one responsible for Keith's embarrassment- was chuckling to himself, grinning smugly. However his triumphant moment was ruined when his manager chimed in with a warning tone.

"Lance. I've talked to you about treating customers this way." The manager- Shiro- didn't directly say 'I've told you to stop tormenting that one specific customer' but Lance knew what Shiro was implying.

"C'mon, we have a strict policy for clothes. If customers are required to have shorts, shirts, shoes then I think it's time we extend it towards hair. Specifically his." Lance countered innocently, ignoring his friend and fellow co-worker in the back, who was frantically waving his hands and shaking his head; Lance didn't take the hint and continued to talk; the disapproving frown on Shiro's face deepened. "It is absolutely unacceptable to have that sort of hazard in here. We are a nice place with standards, Shiro, and those standards are abo—"

"Lance!"

'Uh-oh.' Lance swallowed and his hands started to get clammy. 'I might have pushed it too far.' Lance thought as he braced himself.

"You're off for the week. Pack up your things and go home. I think-" he placed emphasis on the words, "-there's a lot you need to think about; so when you come back after your suspension, I hope some of those things will stick."

Devastation struck Lance's features, leaving his shoulders sagging and his mouth open in distress, but this time around he kept his commentary to himself. He slunk to the back and began to pack up his things, cursing the entire time; he felt like this was all Mullet's fault. Lance's friend approached him, placing a hand on Lance's shoulder.

"Hey, man. Are you alright?" Hunk inquired softly, "and don't say you're not because i could hear you swearing from the counter. In fact, I think everyone in the shop could hear it. I'm not saying that you're a loud guy but you're not exactly the quietest guy around either. Sometimes it's nice having a rowdy friend around but, man. Today wasn't the day to be rowdy. I tried to tell you, didn't you see me warning you? I knew Shiro was already in a bad mood and this would only make it worse." Hunk had good intentions but he got carried away; nothing new, really; Lance was used to Hunk starting off and building up into a long tangent. Lance sighed heavily and turned to raise a brow at Hunk. Hunk stopped mid-sentence, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. "...Sorry."

"It's alright, bro. No sweat." He forced a grin. "You on the other hand, are going to have a lot of sweat. You'll be stuck here without me for a week. What will you do? What about the ladies?! They'll be deprived of my good-looks and smooth talking. And so will you, big guy."

Hunk rolled his eyes with a snort. "You never learn, do you."

Lance chuckled, exchanged a few more words with Hunk, then left Voltron Cafe. He glanced towards the sign, blowing it a kiss goodbye; the cafe's slogan- Best Coffee in the Universe- blinked back at him, and the lions surrounding the name seemed to wave goodbye.

What was he supposed to do for a week?


	2. Chapter 2

A month dragged on and— Alright, alright. It had been a day. Lance went home and busied himself with an intense afternoon of video games, studying, and napping to pass time, and self-care is an important thing, after all. The next morning Lance was up bright and early at five am, preparing to take his morning shift when he remembered the events of yesterday. It got his blood boiling thinking about how he was the one who got in trouble because of THAT guy. That stupid GUY with the really stupid hair and the really stupid voice and the even stupider attitude. It took less than five minutes for Lance to work himself up to the point of near shouting, but he needed someone to shout at so he snatched his phone from its place on his bed and called up Hunk. His oldest friend answered with a groggy "good morning" followed by a "why're you calling me so early man i'm not even out of bed yet".

"I'm calling you because you're my best bro and best bros listen to their bro's when they're having problems, and I have a lot of problems right now, bro."

The other end was silent as Hunk tried to make sense of Lance's rambles that did not let up.

"I don't get what that guys deal was. I didn't do anything to deserve this! I did my job and I did my job well and that dumb guy with his dumb haircut waltzes in and suddenly Shiro is ticked at me! At ME, Hunk!"

"Uhh.." Hunk didn't answer Lance properly or interrupt; he knew Lance well enough to know this was only the beginning.

"All I do is show up to work and try my hardest to please every customer, but nooooOOOoo! Nothing is good enough for the all-might-mullet."

"...Lance..."

"This is all that stupid Mullet's fault! He's been out to make me look bad since I started working here."

"I think he just wanted coffee, dude."

"No way! That guy was out to get me; out to ruin my career!"

"Your... career? Lance, we've had this job for half a semester, and I bet you he doesn't even know your name. Do you know his name, Lance?" Hunk sighed exasperated into the phone.

"It's Keith!" Lance snapped back a tad shrill, still riled up.

"If you know that why do you always write the wrong name down?" There was a hint of knowing underlying his voice; Lance knew that tone and his temper shriveled up into an indignant meekness.

"I... It was... Y'know– I don't have to explain myself to you! Don't you have work to get ready for?" His lips curled back as he fumbled for an excuse to hang up, causing him to sound a bit more venomous than he intended. Hunk took the hint and agreed, hanging up after saying goodbye. It was a good thing Hunk had known Lance long enough to understand it wasn't anything against him, and that it was strictly against the fact Hunk's guess was right.

After their conversation, Lance did some work around his dorm room. He kept a tidy home even amidst the chaos of classes, finals, working, and so on. He had to admit he missed the constant messes of his old home; despite his mother's best efforts to keep every room spotless, having several kids dashed her hopes; it was usually Lance who cleaned up after his younger siblings and it was a job he did with a smile. Nothing made him happier than seeing his mom happy. His self-assigned task of cleaning was done in about an hour and it was now six am. He checked his pantry and fridge, making the choice to eat out. He thought about going to visit Hunk but given the circumstances it felt like it'd be too soon, so he settled on going to the grocery store and grabbing something on the way there; however, his path of travel brought him directly to his favorite customer. The two boys collided and the sound of falling textbooks and splattered coffee could be heard over the startled gasps.

"I'm sor— I resend my apology." Lance grumbled as he stepped back to let Keith pick up his things.

Keith glared up at him and spat back "you're paying for that."

"As if! Besides, because of YOU, I don't have a job to pay for it with." He stuck out his tongue, keeping the fact it was not a permanent suspension to himself.

"You lost your job?" He looked up at him almost like he was sorry.

Lance crinkled his nose and shuffled back; oh no, he thought, I'm not falling for that. I am not falling for those dark eyes and—; the lanky boy tch'ed and turned his nose up. "Yup. All thanks to you."

Keith put his things away this time around, stuffing it without much care into his bag. The cup of coffee was picked up and eyed with regret. Not a single drop remained in the container. All of it had splattered on the concrete, on his books, on his bag, and on Keith himself. He mumbled a sorry and continued to walk on his way. It was about then guilt hit Lance. Hit him hard.

What did he give Keith such a hard time for?


End file.
